Junior Orienteers Shine at Sandringham

Octavian Droobers Orienteering Club

The annual British Schools Orienteering Championships saw many junior Octavian Droobers club members competing for Coventry and Warwickshire schools. For several it was the first time they had represented their school at these national championships, staged at the Sandringham Country Park in Norfolk.

Congratulations to top performers: Florence Lunn who came 1st in 11.53mins and Tabitha Lunn 4th in 13.55mins in the Year 6 race, Heather Rogers 2nd Year 13 in 56.18mins, Cameron Williams-Stein 4th Year 8 in 24.44mins, Oliver Flippance 7th Year 9 in 36.27mins, Harrison McCartney 1st in 35.03mins and Stephen Elkington 4th in 52.34mins in the Year 13 Boys class.

Octavian Droobers Orienteering Club A Team came 4th in the national UK Orienteering 2015 League with a score of 5650 points earned from competing throughout the year in major competitions. Congratulations to Anne Straube W40 the leading club member who came top in her age group and 4th overall. The 15 club members earning the points were: Anne Straube W40, Trevor Simpson M75, Hilary Simpson W75, Andy Simpson M40, Lesley Ross W45, Liz Phillips W50, Julie Emmerson W20, Andy Emmerson M55, Matthew Elkington M20, Sheila Carey W65, Peter Carey M70 and Bruce Bryant M55. With so many members travelling to these events the 15 strong B team amassed 3269 points and came a creditable 26th out of a total 107 national club teams.

Derwent Valley Orienteers organised an Urban race around Matlock which proved popular with Droobers. Mateusz Podsiadly was 3rd on the Mens Open 7.4km course with 270metres of climb, found 23 controls in 50.53mins and won the prize of a Bakewell Pudding for completing two designated legs in the fastest time. Chris McCartney M45 was 2nd on the Mens Vet 6.3km course taking 41.57mins, Liz Phillips 2nd Womens Vet on the 5.1km course in 48.45mins and Sheila Carey W65 2nd on the Womens Super Vet 4.4km course in 49.16mins.

At Middleton Park, near Leeds, Mike Hampton was 2nd M65 in 71.17mins on the Blue 5.9km course with 165 metres of climb and Kirsten Strain was 2nd W21 on the long Brown 8.1km course with 220 metres of climb taking 77.50mins.